In our first unit in Social Studies, we learned about the land in the communities of Iqaluit in Nunavut, Meteghan in Nova Scotia, and Saskatoon in Saskatchewan. We will now revisit the communities and focus on people and culture in those communities—the Inuit, the Acadians, and the Ukrainians. Through stories, activities and research, we will:

Learn about individuals who have contributed to the development of the communities

Learn some cultural characteristics that members of each community share

Learn how traditions are shared and passed on

Your child will be better able to make connections with material presented in class if he or she has experiences and knowledge to draw on. Here is how you can help:

Discuss your cultural background and find specific places on a map

Discuss any specific traditions in your home

See if you can learn more about the cultural background in your own home and/or that of Inuit, Acadians, or Ukrainians (museums, art galleries, libraries, television specials, and the Internet are excellent sources of information)

We invite you to share your cultural background with us. Would you be willing to come to class and share some information? Do you have any materials you could lend us?Here are some specifics of what we are looking for:Traditions—Are there any traditions, celebrations, special foods or recipes, special games or objects you could show or talk about?Language—Is there another language spoken in your home? Perhaps you and your child could share some simple words or books in that language with the class.Music or Art—Do you have any music or art that reflects your culture? Can you show us any traditional clothing?

​You can watch the video above to see a glimpse of the lovely people in Iqaluit!